Til Death Do Us Part
---- Haunting Thoughts Days after the Forest of Death ordeal, Gai travelled back towards the Stellara Nocte guild on foot, passing through towns and cities with only the thought of coming back to Aiko after so long. The moon had already found its place high in the night sky by the time Gai had entered the town, with only the sounds of crickets chirping by the path that Gai followed. He quickly became suited to the idea of travelling around like this, finding that his journeys would help him connect better to the land that he'd have to call home. He couldn't deny that he missed the cheery atmosphere of Stellara Nocte's guild hall, and all the friendly faces that had welcomed into their home with open arms. As he walked through the town's open gate, Gai noticed that the settlement was eerily quiet at this time, which was strange as it felt that it was wasn't even that late by the time he arrived. Without pausing to look around, Gai continued walking through with his hands inside his pockets, eyes flipping left and right to see if there was any life in this desolate street. The houses were boarded up, dead with darkness inside, the only sounds of life that really could be heard was the animals that began crawling around in the night, eager to search for their food. It looked as though the town had been dead for weeks considering the dust that had built up, cobwebs strung all over and the vegetation that grew through the cracks in the road, slowly consuming the town in green. Gai began feeling a bit worried about the situation and considered turning back to the town he spent the last night over, but it would be hard to maneuver through the darkness, and especially dangerous with the number of thugs that could be hiding along the way at this hour. It would be much safer to stay here than move back, so finding a place to camp out would be Gai's best bet at continuing his journey. Besides, it would only be for the night anyway, so he'd only have to be sleeping inside the mysterious, creepy walls of the abandoned homes and buildings. Continuing on his path with only the moonlight to guide his way, Gai stumbled across a small abandoned home, built in a sort of Tudor style. Its walls were boarded up just like the rest, but its door was slightly opened, giving Gai a slight peek to the grim darkness that dwelled within. With no sense of caution in his mind, the man shrugged his shoulders and continued in, kicking the door open to let the moon in. From what light had entered the building, Gai could see that the wood plank floor was slightly dusty with a broken chair near the door and a mug left to lie in the open. If he squinted, Gai could see the spider that had made its home within the cup, waiting for any unsuspecting bug to crawl past and become its meal. Gai wasn't slow to slam the door, as with no source of light to feel at ease inside, he couldn't imagine trying to run through the darkness before going to sleep. Deciding that the front garden seemed good enough for him, Gai dropped his bags in an open area on the weedy terrain and fell back onto his makeshift bed, looking up to the starry sky. "Wonder if I should head back to the Ikinobiru Province... Haven't been there since leather skin and key chain dragged me out of the tomb." He sighed as he felt his eyes slowly closing together and yawned. "Where are you Michikiyo? Where were you when we fell?" ---- "I'm sorry little one... I didn't mean to abandon you like that." Gai's eyes shot open to see that he was no longer laying down in the garden along the dark, deserted street, but now in the soft plain fields just outside his old home in Taeru. A feeling of calm washed over his body and prevented him from jumping up too quickly, feeling as though he was being lifted by something to stand up. As his feet found its place on the ground, Gai looked around to see that the world around him looked bright and bubbly, all too different from the way he saw it hundreds of years back. "Michikiyo? I-is that you?" He responded in a childish voice. As he heard his sound, Gai stepped back in shock to see that he had shrunken down to a child's body, noticing that his body had been significantly changed to the way that he was when he began travelling with Michikiyo. He felt his hair and his teeth, and his face to feel that it was soft and without any fault. Looking out towards a hill, he saw a woman sitting down, legs crossed with her back turned towards the young boy. A black pony tail fluttered in the breeze that passed through, eventually crashing into Gai's face as it sent him tumbling backwards into the dirt and grass. Pulling himself from the ground, Gai felt his face for any damage and noticed that it was the same as when he checked, with no grain of dirt of broken off grass carried up by his face. "Michikiyo? Is it you?" Gai repeated himself again, wiping his cheek with the back of his wrist. "I didn't mean to do that to you little one. But you need time to grow. And now look at you. A master of magic." She said in a motherly loving way with her back still turned on Gai. Gai began feeling hurt in his chest, these were the words that he wanted to hear from her for such a long time, but knowing that all of this wasn't real seemed as though the dream he was having was taunting him. Feeling for his chest, Gai patted the front of his down to feel for any bump that may be the Vulcan Pendant, hoping that he had it with him to summon Takara just in case. "Are you looking for this?" Michikiyo said in the same voice, holding an arm to the side with the pendant dangling from her hand. "Hiromoto passed this onto you, correct? You should take more care for it." She sighed before throwing the pendant backwards towards Gai. The piece of jewellery began crumbling away in the air before making it towards him, the dust that it faded into flying away through another breeze that passed. Gai felt a cold object press against his skin as soon as the pendant disappeared from sight, prompting him to feel for the bump underneath his red gi. Sure enough, it was there, allowing Gai to breathe easy knowing that he had his protection with him again. "What would Hiromoto say if he knew that you had lost that? I don't think that he'd be very impre-" "Where were you when Taeru fell?" Gai interrupted quickly before she could finish. Michikiyo could be heard letting out a small, subtle gasp as she listened to Gai, returning her hand back in front of her whilst her back was still turned on him. "What?" "Where were you when Taeru fell?" Gai repeated himself in a more annoyed tone. "Taeru fell?" She asked in a concerned, almost saddened voice, as her head slightly leaned forwards. "How do you not know? Where were you when the city was invaded?" "... I... I don't know." She choked up, not being sure how to respond to his question. "Fine. If you won't answer that. Then where were you when I was taken away? To be sealed within my family's tomb for more than half a millennium?" He asked in a calm voice despite wanting to scream at the woman he held so dearly. He held himself back from lashing out by gripping his fists, wanting so badly to charge at Michikiyo for the truth, but the sensibilities and manners that were forced onto him due to his lineage prevented him from acting like the lowly peasants that both him and Michikiyo were mocked by. "I... I can't answer that just yet." Michikiyo said as she pulled herself up, dusting her lap before withdrawing her sword. "But you've got a war to finish little one..." As she finished her words, the world around Gai began shifting in a sickening way that turned his stomach. The world darkened as flames reached into the sky, black smoke choking out the sunlight that shone over the city with delicate rays. Screams of innocents filled the sky along with the crackling of fire and the clashing of steel, embedding their distinct sounds into Gai's ears. He was reliving the experience that haunted him to this day, but this time he could change it for the better, this time he could fight alongside his soldiers to turn the tide of war back onto the aggressors. Maybe if he fought hard enough, this dream could turn into reality, and he could make sure that his clan would survive into the age we woke up in. Gai believed that this was the universe's way of giving him a second chance, which he accepted without a moment of hesitation. Looking onto the burning city of Taeru, Gai looked back to see that Michikiyo had disappeared, most likely vanished after he was startled by the sudden change of his environment. Holding his hand out with a flash of red brighting up the inside of his gi, Gai summoned Takara into his grip before running towards Taeru to try and get there before things were too late. His feet felt light as he sped across the grass towards the fortress, effortlessly dodging rocks and trees that were in his way. The grass underneath him grew taller and taller the closer he got to the city, with his footprints becoming visible as the grass he stepped on became flat once he travelled over it. Twirling Takara around his wrist, he could make out the state of the city walls: torn apart by catapults and ladders flung onto its side to give its invaders a way in. Gai became sick at the sight, but felt his heart sink even more when he noticed that the Ikinobiru's banners were set alight. At least this time he was able to pay the clans back for what they were doing to his beloved home. Upon making it just outside the walls, Gai saw a small fight going on just by the entrance, between heavily armoured Ikinobiru and Umarekawaru warriors, all armed with katanas and spears which they thrusted at the other. Without stopping himself, Gai charged forward with Takara by his side and pulled himself back to prepare Takara. None of the soldiers would expect the heir of the Ikinobiru to come back nor be outside where the battle was waging, making it easier for the young man to appear behind the Umarekawarus and swipe Takara to the side. As he did so, the head of the mace flew off with a chain following after, with the head increasing in size at an astonishing rate that as soon as it made contact with the Umarekawarus it threw them all to the side, so crashing into burning down, broken homes that were destroyed during the invasion. Those Umarekawarus that were left continued battling, but with the appearance of the Ikinobiru prince and their reduced numbers, were quickly finished off as sword and steel pierced and gutted their bodies. "My lord! We weren't expecting you to be outside the palace walls at this time!" One of the Ikinobiru soldiers said as they all bowed their heads in respect to Gai. "Enough with the formalities. Escort me to the palace this instant, we're taking back this city no matter what." Gai ordered as he stormed inside, causing the men to follow behind him. "Keep me up to date. What's happened out here?" "The Umarekawaru, Raishū and the Hitoshirezu sent their armies here to storm the city... They invaded us with the help of rebels from our own clan as our reports seem to detail." One of the soldiers spoke out. "Impossible. I thought I cleared the clan of any rebellion." Gai said, only turning his head to look back to the soldier from the corner of his eye. "Not all the rebels hid inside the walls my lord. Some had escaped into the enemy clans' territories and informed them of our structures. I believe your father knew about this since the message of the incoming invasion had been delivered by numerous informants." The soldier spoke out again as the group travelled through the ruined courtyards and streets. "So its because of me that this happened?" Gai whispered to himself. Looking around the desecrated city, Gai could spot homes trashed and burned, the boulders thrown by the enemy's catapults fastened into the ground with bricks and other debris having fallen behind it. Trees were cut down to make the bonfires that scattered the streets, burning dead bodies and flags that held the Ikinobiru's mon. This was what his father tried to protect him from, but Gai knew that he could've helped prevent this from the start. Why the universe decided to give him his chance of turning the war back at the moment the city was destroyed was beyond him, but it was an opportunity that he knew he would have to grab if it meant getting his clan back. "Do we know how many soldiers are left in the city?" Gai ordered, making his way closer to the large castle that sat at the city's highest level. "No sir. We had just returned from the battle outside in the plains when the armies were advancing. We were able to prevent any more destruction caused by their machines of war but we were too late to stop any of this." One of the soldiers replied, "They must have had forces sneak around and invade while a lot of us were out on the front lines." "And who ordered you lot to fight outside city walls?" Gai said, a fire much harsher than the ones in the city blazed within his eyes. "...Y-your father my lord. Lord Oyaji." "Damn. Were not meant to be the aggressors this time." Gai thought in his head as they continued on their way. The group reached closer to the castle, but the closer they came the more gruesome the sights turned at the same time. The streets were filled with bodies, of both civilian and soldier, old and young, men and women. Homes broken into as windows and doors were broken and torn off, with weapons of the Ikinobiru laid all across the stone pavement. It was a bloodbath here as the enemy spared no-one in their advance towards the castle. Whilst subtle, Gai could catch the sound of men marching up the staircase towards the palace, a sign that it wasn't too late to save his family. A glimmer of hope filled Gai's heart at the sound of this, prompting him to begin leaping up the stairs in a rush, hoping to take the men out before they broke down the castle's doors and finished off the leaders of the Ikinobiru clan. "MY LORD PLEASE WAIT." A soldier cried out as he saw Gai rushing up the stairs. His plea fell on deaf ears, however, as Gai continued on, Takara still in hand thirsting for the blood of enemy clans. The steps dripped of blood and tears, with some bonfires built at the beginning of every level, smoke quickly building up the higher he went. At this point, Gai could not feel his body ache or tire, flying up the stairs effortlessly to catch up. From the side he could spot the colours of blue, orange and pink, adrenaline quickly building up with an urge to fight flaring. It didn't take long before Gai found himself right behind the group after only a few minutes of walking, in what would feel like only a short period of blinks to the young man. He could see the soldiers dressed from head to toe in heavy plates, spears and swords gripped firmly in both their hands, almost laughing at the chaos that they had sown back down in the city. One of the soldiers had turned back to the see the Ikinobiru prince standing alone, and was quick to nudge the other soldiers to warn them of his appearance. Everyone in the group turned around with their weapons at the ready, those with swords holding it before their chests pointed at the young man, those with spears standing firmly on the stairs pointing them outwards. Gai brandished Takara and spun it around his fingers, before catching the mace facing downwards. The opposing sides stared each other down in a moment of tense caution, waiting for the other to act so that they could retaliate. While Gai knew that he was outnumbered, a feeling of helplessness didn't occur within him at all, but rather the confidence to make him feel invincible. "That's Oyaji's boy, isn't it?" A man in blue armour asked. "Strange, thought he'd be inside with the others." "Let's just get this over and done with. We'll taunt Oyaji with the corpse of his son." Gai tried to hold back as best as he could, but the taunting and threats that the soldiers continued wave after wave, prompting Gai to try and make the first move. Without sparing another second to listen to the enemy, Gai flung the mace upwards, allowing the head of the weapon to fly upwards into the black, smokey sky followed by its golden chain. As it ascended, the head expanded into the size of a cart before being manoeuvred forward to cast its shadow just over the grouped up soldiers. Its size in the air stirred worry within the soldiers who began to spread outwards, some even beginning to charge towards Gai with their weapons held out front. Once the weapon found itself above its target, Gai pulled back and helped the morningstar head descend quickly on the soldiers, despite its large size already causing it to rocket back down onto the staircase. In no time, the head collided with the target, crushing some soldiers underneath its large body and destroying that part of the staircase along with them, sending splinters and bits of wood flying around. The instant shock had also caused some soldiers that were fleeing or charging to stumble and lose balance, many of which fell back down the stairs with very little to no success getting back up or thrown off the side to their undisputed deaths. As the head had fallen, Gai had simultaneously pulled himself upward to use the momentum of the force to propel him into the air, causing him to fly over and land on the other side of the impact zone. Landing on the start of a new level to the stairs, Gai flicked the chain and pulled the morningstar head back to its hilt, decreasing its size the closer it go to him. Flicking the hilt forward, Gai presented Takara in its base form and moved forward, wanting to see his family again after so long.